Big Sur

Kayla was kind of excited about roasting a marshmallow...camping is one of the few occasions we let her eat anything that doesn't occur naturally on earth--that's because we're so earthy. No really, it's because she's "lergic" (as she says) to artificial colors and ingredients. But that's a whole other blog.
Camping was fun--can you tell that I'm lying? Both kids got sick the day we left and I hate getting up in the middle of the night and needing my flashlight to walk down to the bathrooms only to sit on a chilly metal public receptacle and stare up at prehistoric size bugs living on the open-air ceiling. But at least the showers were scorchingly hot, just how I like them. Oh, and Benson got a tick. Now can you tell that I'm lying? However, Ryan, Kayla and Benson had the times of their lives I think, so it's worth it for me to live a few slightly less comfortable days for the sheer joy of kids getting to be dirty and catching parasites 24-7.
I do honestly have to say though, it was absolutely beautiful--the scenery in this photo was so gorgeous it looks super-imposed:



And Kayla had a super fun time with her cousin.




Here's our "setup". We've got a big tent that hooks onto the van to add additional space--we use it to put all of our stuff in so there is space when we pull out the beds in the van. And believe me, without the Westy I would NOT be doing any camping with the little chitlins! I highly recommend picking one up if you're ever thinking of camping...at all...ever. Sleeping in tents is so last season.



So, generally speaking, I would have to say that this is what I think of camping:



But, this is what I think of seeing my husband and kids happy: